Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1887-09-22
BRITAIN's NAVY.
Launch Of One or the Largest ships
Ofwar Anywhere Aaont.

dtd gives the following particulars OF
the launch Of the Trafalgar In the
presence to-day Of all the Lords of the
Admiralty and an immense concourso
of people, soon after noon, a warship
OF exceptionally powerful type was
launched at Portsmouth to be added to
the royal navy as the Trafalgar. She
will be larger and considerably more
formidable than any other British iron
clad at present sdoat. Although some
huge Italian warships exceed her Ia
tonnage displacement and in heavy
gun-pOWer, not one OF them is so well
protected us the Trafalgar will be When
finished.
HER IMPORTANT FEATURES.
She will displace II $40 tons of water,
and will have cost not far short of goo,
coo (about 1850, 0OO). As she lies
this morning she has cost less than
GS00,000 and only $500 tons of steel
and iron have been worked into her
massive hull. She is 34j feet long and
seventy-three feet broad. Her coal stow
age is 300 tons in fore and aft bunkers.
Her armament IS to consist Of four
Observation-Disclosures sixty seven ton
breech-loading guns, eight fiveinch
breech-lOading guns, six thirty-six
FOUNDER quick firing guns, eight six
FOUNDER and eleven three-pounder
gotchkiss quick firing guns, machine,
boat, and field guns, and twenty-fOur
Whitehead torpedoes.
HrR MONSTER PROJECTmEs.
The tuurct guns will fire projectiles
weighing $50 pounds, with powder
charge OF G30 pounds, aud will train
through an angle OF 270 degrees. The
eight iiye-inch guns will be mounted
On the upper deck between the turrets,
and will be protected on the sides Of
the ship from rifle fire 10y two thick
nessos Of hslf-inch plating, and at each
end of the battery by armored bulk
heads one inch thick, fitted upon six
inches of backing and an inner skin.
These guns viii train through 60 de-
groes on each side of tho beam. The
eight six-pounder Hotcbkiss guns will
fire from the spar deck, but the three
FOUNDER guns will be distributed be-
tween the spar deck, the bridge, the
stem ports, and the military tops.
TorrEDo ARRANGEMENTS.
There are eight torpedo-tuoes, four
above and four below the water line,
the latter being fixed tubes. The above
wator-tubes are protected from ma
chine gun fire by two.inch plating.
The vessel viii be fitted with twin
screws, each driven 10y an Independent
set If trip.o.oxpansion engines, with
three vertical cylinders Of collective
power Of 5000 horses for each set
The weight Of this machinery is 10 be-
about 1000 tons. The crank aud pro
peller-shafting are hollow and are made
If compressed steel. The diameter Of
the screw propcllers will be about SIX
teen feet.
THE LAST or THEIR FIND.
Another turret ship, exactly like her
and Of her dimensions, is buildin- az
Pembroke, to be called the Nile. The
NniU N.CS, commenting on the event,
says:
at 5 not improbable that these two
monsters viii lie the last OF orr very
big iIouclads. No others Of Grst class
size nave. during the past two years,
been laid down, and among naval con.
stIuctors the conviction is now rapidly
gaining ground that, for practical pur-
poses, vessels Of moderate tonnage
always provided they are Of great
spced-w.ll be found more useful than
loyiathane. Our present ignorance o.
the realities Of modern naval warfare
run us into dangerous risks by invest
ing in the construction Of single iron
clads sums which otherwise discussed
would provide a whole flotilla of fast
cruisers, armored guu-boIts, AMI swift
torpedo vessels